Knitting machine



A. E; PAGE KNITTING MACHINE Deca 21 1926.

3 Shee ts-Sheat 1 ZZZ Filed May 13 $5! 3325 affarneys Dean 21 1926 1,611,668 A. E. PAGE 7 KN I TITING MACHINE I Filed May 15 1925 "3 Sheets-Sheet a IN VE IV T05 A. E. PAGE KNITTING MACHINE Dec 21 1926.

, 1925 3 Sheets'Sheet :3

Filed May 13 Ml V511! 70/? I Retented Dec. 2i, 332$.

whiten s reets rnrnnr manner n. seen, or nnoonnrn, new YORK, .Assmnoe To sco'rr new wm n, 1nc., or new .YGRK, n. 31.,- A snRnoenxricixi'or-ninesecnusn'm e KNITTING MACHINE.

Application filed May 13, 1825. Serial No. 30,625.

Myinvention relates to circular knitting machines ndaptedto make seamless hosiery and more particularly to the means for controlling the switch cam. One object of my & invention is to provide a machine wh ch Will produce a seamless stocking which is more acceptable than those now made. -Another object is to efiect-economy' in the product on of such stockings, especially when a. portion of the stocking is spliced by feedingextra yarn to certain of :the needles, as ior instance, to those employed in knitting the rear portion of the ankle, eel and the toe of the stockings- ,e is For purposes: of'illustration I will show and describe my invention embodied in the well-known Scott & Williams type of automatic hosiery machine for the purpose of making what is known as a small heel. In the drawings, Fig.1is an elevation from I the front'of. the machine showing the switch cam nndits control elements made according to my'invention; Fig.' 2 is an elevation from the side of the 55 machine showing the inein pattern drum and the switch cam lever; J

Fig. 3 is n plan view corresponding to Fig. 1 showingthe widening picker; V Fig. isan enlarged section of the trigger taken on the line 4-14 ot'Fig, 1; v Fig, 5 iseside .view of the foot and ankle portions of a stocking produced on my machine; end

Fig. (i is a dingrnm'of the circle of needles in my machine.

The ordinary method of knitting a serum l'ess stocking. upon a circular knitting machine is-to start thelrnitting -upon n11 of the needles of the machine ,and to productubu- 40 le -web, b'y round and round knitting upon said needles, until the point is reached at which the heel is to he produced. A switch cam is then dropped down causing all the needles having high hutts (i. e, the hali of the circle of needlescorresponding to the instep po'rtion ot the web) to ride up'over the switch cum completely out f action though retaining their loops. Reciprocating knitting is then conducted upon the remaining 59 or short hutt needles. with alternate widening and narrowing of the web caused hythc usual narrowing and mdening-jnckers.

The effect ofthis is to produceuponthe rear half of the tubular leg-web a pocket having on-eech side tapered webs united on The heel pocket being completedi the switch cam is swung up to bring the instep or high butt needles down into action again, and round-end-round knitting is resumed for the production of the foot' weh ofthe stocking. Upon completion of said foot web a Seamless toe pocket is formed upon the-end of the same by a methodof knitting similar to that resorted to .for the production oft'he heel, the terminal stitches around the mouth v of this toe pocket being united to the-'terini j nu-l stitches at the front end of the instep web of the foot in order to close the toe and complete the stocking.

-I have-invented: e machine which knits a stocking having a inuch'snialler heel then usual by using considerably less then onehali" of the circle ofneedles' for the production of the heel. l prefer to use needles having four lengths of butts in carrying'out my invention, foiz a reason which will hemen tioned leter. 1n the drawings I have shownav half circleof needles it having high butts,

three needles n having medium butts zit eechcnd ofthesemi-circle of highhutt needies, three needles n having medium short butt-s next to each group of medium butt needles, the balance being needles n having shortbutts.

For the purpose of throwing into end out of action such needles es are not needed during the formation ofthe heel and 'toe pockets 1 provide the usual switch caiin 415 mounted in a bracket 111 on the hedplete D i by means of an actuating spindle 410 lying in the bracket lll. There is a cam on roller slot 412. in the bracket in which lies a screw 413 having a roll thereon. The slot-{H2 is so shaped that when theswitch can] is turnedupwnrd the screw 413'forces the spindle and switch cain toward the needle butts, but the slot does not prevent limited rotnry more ment in that forward position. For the pur-' pose of turningthe spindle 410 a collar 408 with-e. wine; 409 is mounted on the rear end l "f the spindle in such e1 manner that the wing overlies a vertical gravity rod 216 passing down through an opening in the bedplate D to one end of a lever 215 pivoted on a .stud 124 projecting from the frame or" the Eel '510 being of full height.

machine. The'other end of this lever 215 projects into the path of cams 509, 509 and 510 on the usual main pattern drum 120. These cams are of different heights, that numbered 509 bein very low, that numbered 509 being medlum, and that numbered These cams are all in one path on the drum. The cam con-; trol mechanism which I have just describedf serves, amongst other things, to raise'the' switch cam to its up position'where it can bring down such needles as have been out of action in the upper position. There is a spring 414 stretched between the switch earn bracket 411 and the switch cam itself which tends both to keep the latter in its. down position as determined by the screw 413 and slot 412 and by a stop post 226 of slots and fitted'holes with the pivot screw taking into the switch cam bracket at once gives the trig er a pivot point and a simple adjustment oi the length of its arms all in a very small space.

There is :1 lug 227 on the switch cam which is horizontally opposite the near end of the I described where it rests against a t-ri ger stop 230 on the switch cam bracket (see ig. 3). The adjustment of the trigger with relation to the lug 227'on the switch cam is such that when the lug rests against the end of the trigger the switch cam liesin the path'of the butts of medium short butt 5 needles n and medium butt needles n as well I as those having long butts. The gravity rod mounted vertically on the bedplate D, and 216 is so'located with respect to the pivot also to. kep it retracted as far as possible frornthe needle butts. The stop post also serves as horizontal stop for the switch cam whenin its retracted position. This horizontal adjustment is obtained by a screw 229 passing horizontally through a vertical lug on the top of the stop post and "should be such that when the cam rests against the screw, the former lies in the path of the long butt needles only.

As is customary in the Scott & Williams type of machine, (see the R. W. Scott latent 1,152,850 dated September 7, 1915), the gravity rod 216 also operates the dropper or widening picker 680 (Fig. 3) by means of a dropper finger 218 fixed above the bedplate D on the gravity rod 216 by a set screw 219.

I providethefollowing mechanism to cooperate with the elements already described in obtaining the manipulation of the switch cam necessary to the production of the small heel. Projecting horizontally from the sleeve ofthe dropper finger 218 is a pin 228, and taking under the pin is the lower end of atrigger 221. This trigger 221 is pivother hand the dropper is notaffected by any oted on the switch cam bracket 411 by a shouldered pivot screw 222 (see Fig. 4).

In order to make this trigger horizontally adjustable with relation to the switch cam l make the opening' in the trigger through which lhe pivot screw 222 passes in' the form of a slot 222, and fasten an adjusting plate outside the trigger by means of'the pivot screw and an ad usting screw 224 (see Fig.4). \Vhile the pivot screw lies in a slot in the trigger it passes through a fitted hole in the adjusting plate. and in distinction thereto the adjusting screw 224 is threaded in the trigger. does not take into the switch ram bracket and lies in a slot seem the adjusting plate. 'Ihisalternation screw of. the trigger that when the rod is pulled down till the sleeve of the dropper finger 218 touches the bedplate D the tri ger is tipped up by pin 228 till it slips 0 the lug 227 and the switch cam is retracted by spring 414 till it engages only the long butt needles 71 When the drum cam 510 is under the lever 215 the adjustment is such that the switch cam is in its up position but when the lever rests on cam'509 or 509 or the surface of the main attern drum 120 the switch cam'is in its own position. When the main pattern drum is racked till the switch cam lever is off all three cams then the trigger releases the switch cam to its fully retracted position and the widening picker or dropper is lowered to inoperative position. By the above construction the gravity rod is given four positions forv the control of the dropper and switch cam combined. It will be observed that-while passage of the rod 216-between the intermediate positions caused by cams 509* and 509 moves the widening picker or dropper, this passage in no way afl'ects the switci cam. On the other movements of the rod.

I shall now describe the operation of my machine when making the foot and feeding splicing yarn to a lesser number of needles Kid misses l 1,

the use of a thin lixed cam on the following stitch cum adapted to eng'agethe butts on the needles n and n and draw those needles down before they'engage that yarn,

changes to reciprocating knitting going into the heel the switch cam lever 215 drops down onto ca'n' i 509 and the switch cam is lowered.

till it "contacts with the upright stop post 226 and the end of the trigger 221 (see Figs. 1, 2 and 3). In this position the switch cam raises the long butt needles n the medium butt needless and the medium short butt ncedlesn out of action, and the heel is 'formed'by the usual alternate narrowing 'and'widening but only on the short butt At the same time that the switch needles a camwas lowered the w dening picker or dropper was lowered to an idle intermediate position between the upper and lower paths of theneedle butts, but when it is time for the wideningpicker or dropper to come into action to widen the web the main pattern drum moves cam 509 under the lever 215 which lifts the rod 216 sutliciently to release the widening picker or dropper to the upper needle butt path, but not far enough to turn the switch "cam up. When all the short butt needles n have been restored to action by the. widening picker or dropper the pattern drum 120 moves again bringing the cam 510 under the lever 21 5 andcausing the switch.

cam to bring down the medium short butt needles a the medium butt needles n andthe lon butt needles W. The machine simultaneous y resumes rotary knitting and the. foot'is formed with the splicing yarn fed to the-medium short butt needles n as well as the 'short butt needles 12.". Upon going into the .toe the lever 2l5 rides'ofi' the cam 510 onto drum 120, the rod 216 lowers the widenin picker or dropper finger 218 to the bedp latetripping thetrigger and releasing the switch cam which is at once pulled to its fully retracted position where it comes in contact with the screw 229 'in the post 226, the screw 413 resting on the edge of the slot 412, and the cam 415 resting on the top of post 226 during the movement. In this position the switch cam raisesonly the long butt needles/n which form just half the circle of needles on the instep side. The

pocket is formed by the same alternate nar-' rowing and widening of the fabric, but the operation is performed on halfthe needles instead of less than half as was done at the heel.--- I 1;. It willbe ohviousthata small heel may "be produced by usingonly three lengtlisof needle butts, though-by using four lengths the reinforced portion of thestocking is extended say three wales on each side beyond outline of the reinforced portions of the sole and ankle. being represented by the dotted lines (Z in Fig. 5 and the outline of the heel by the dotted lines f.

' By the compact construction which has been described I am able to add an additional function to the switch cam and still have a single cam-controlled means to control the widening picker or dropper and switch cam. i

What I claim is:

bination with a longitudinally movable rod adapted to move the switch cam radially and rotatably, and means controlled by said rod the corner of the heel joint intothe'instep portion, thus strengthening said corner, the" or V '1. In a knitting machine, a switch camadapted to raise and lower needles, in comadapted to hold said switch cam in two r'etracted positions. I

2. In a knitting machine, a switch cam adapted to raise and lower needles, in combination with a longitudinally movable'rod adapted to move the cam toward the no dice and raise-same, means tending to retract and lower the cam, and trigger means adapted j to hold said cam In an intermediate retracted position, said rod being adapted to trip said trigger means.

In a knitting machine," a switch cam adapted to raise and lower needles and to. be placed in two adjustable retracted positions, a spring tending to retract said cam, and a trigger tending to hold said cam in an intermediate retracted positlon, in com-- hination with a single cam controlled means adapted to actuate said cam and; trip said trigger, substantially as described. .7

4. In a-knitting machine, a switch cam adapted to raise and lower needles, :1 widening picker, and a single cam-controlled means adapted to control said gwidenin picker and switch cam, in combination with trigger means adapted to hold said cam in an intermediate retracted, position, said 'cam- 1 controlled means being adapted to trip said trigger means.

5. In a knitting machine, needles, a switch cam adapted to raise and lower needles, a

spring tending to retract said cam, and a widening picker, in combination with a longitudinally movable rod and trigger means adapted t; hold said switch cam in an intermediate retracted position with respect to said needles, said rod being adapted, to posi tion said WlQBIllIlg picker. and 1n passage to one position to actuate the switch cam, in

passage to another to permit-the switch cam to be moved by the spring, and in passage to 'another to trip said trigger means.

6.- In a knitting machine, a switch cam adapted to raise andlower needles and to hbeplaced in two ndjnstnbie retracted positions and a widening picker, in combination :Wlth a smgle-cam-controlled means having fear positions and adapted to a tuate said said means between its two widening picker and switch cam, passage of intermediate positions affecting only said widening picker, and its other movements affecting only said switch cam substantially as described. In testlmony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

ALBERT E. PAGE. 

